Tape printing apparatus

Abstract

A platen holder 8 is provided with a stopper member 12 which comes into contact with a lever 20 depressed when the platen holder 8 is rotated to a home position by removing of a cassette cover 2B from an upper cover 2A. The stopper member 12 is formed to have a contact plane 12A so that an angle α defined between the contact plane 12A and an imaginary line connecting a tip end R of the stopper member 12 and a fixed point P is set to approximately 90° or less than 90°. A projection part 13 is provided in the platen holder 8, which is to be pressed by a tape cassette 4 when inserted in a tape receiving part. When the platen holder 8 is rotated to an operational position after the cassette cover 2B is attached to the upper cover 2A, a clearance is produced between the projection part 13 of the platen holder 8 and the tape cassette 4.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A tape printing apparatus comprising: a main body having a tape receiving part;   a cover member for opening and closing the tape receiving part;   a tape cassette having a print tape therein, the tape cassette being set in the tape receiving part;   a platen mechanism movable between an operational position and a home position according to a closing and opening operation of the cover member, the platen mechanism feeding the tape from the tape cassette;   a print head for printing on the print tape fed by the platen mechanism;   a blade for cutting the print tape after printed by the print head;   a holding member for covering the blade slidably therein between a cutting position and a holding position;   a resilient member for biasing the blade toward the holding position;   a lever for pressing the blade toward the cutting position; and   a stopper member formed on the platen mechanism, which comes into contact with the lever when the platen mechanism is in the home position according to opening of the cover member and sets a lock mode that the blade is held in the holding position.   
     
     
       2. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a position fixing member formed near the tape receiving part, wherein the platen mechanism is rotatable about a fixed point and is biased toward the position fixing member. 
     
     
       3. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the platen mechanism comes into contact to the position fixing member when the cover member is opened. 
     
     
       4. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the stopper member has a contact plane to come into contact with the lever. 
     
     
       5. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a pressing force produced when the lever is pressed under the lock mode acts to rotate the platen mechanism toward the position fixing member. 
     
     
       6. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein an angle defined between the contact plane of the stopper member and an imaginary line connecting a tip end of the stopper member and the fixed point is set to approximately 90° or less than 90°. 
     
     
       7. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a projection part formed on the platen mechanism, the projection part being pressed by the tape cassette set in the tape receiving part and moving slightly the platen mechanism toward the operational position from the home position. 
     
     
       8. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the stopper member is moved along with slight movement of the platen mechanism and the lock mode is released. 
     
     
       9. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein further movement of the platen mechanism caused by the closing operation of the cassette cover produces a clearance between the projection part of the platen mechanism and the tape cassette. 
     
     
       10. A tape printing apparatus comprising: a main body having a tape receiving part;   a tape cassette removably inserted in the tape receiving part, the tape cassette holding a tape therein;   a printing means for performing a print operation on the tape fed out of the tape cassette;   a blade for cutting the tape printed by the printing means, the blade being movable between a cutting position and a holding position apart from the tape;   a lever to be operated for moving the blade from the holding position to the cutting position; and   a stopper member for preventing the lever from being operated to move the blade from the holding position to the cutting position when the tape cassette is removed from the tape receiving part and, alternatively, for allowing the lever to be operated when the tape cassette is inserted in the tape receiving part.   
     
     
       11. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a cassette cover for covering the tape receiving part, the cassette cover being removably attached to the tape receiving part. 
     
     
       12. The tape printing apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising an actuating member on which the stopper member is formed, wherein the actuating member restricts the lever to be operated through the stopper member when the cassette cover is removed from the tape receiving part and allows the lever to be operated when the cassette cover is set to the tape receiving part. 
     
     
       13. A tape printing apparatus comprising: a main body having a tape receiving part;   a tape cassette removably inserted in the tape receiving part, the tape cassette holding a tape therein;   a cassette cover for covering the tape receiving part, removably attached to the tape receiving part;   a printing means for performing a print operation on the tape fed out of the tape cassette;   a blade for cutting the tape printed by the printing means, the blade being movable between a cutting position and a holding position apart from the tape;   a lever to be operated for moving the blade from the holding position to the cutting position; and   a stopper member for preventing the lever from being operated to move the blade from the holding position to the cutting position when the cassette cover is removed from the tape receiving part and, alternatively, for allowing the lever to be operated when the cassette cover is set to the tape receiving part.